Take Me In
by Alsike
Summary: Most people, on waking up, accelerate through a quick panicky preconsciousness checkup: who am I, where am I, who is heshe, good god, why am I cuddling a policeman's helmet, what happened last night? Terry Pratchett: Witches Abroad


Haruka was bored. This was nothing new, which made it worse. The other thing that made it even worse was that she was on a motorcycle. When one is on a motorcycle one should either be having the time of their life, or dying of fear, unless one is in traffic. Haruka felt like she was in traffic all the time. But this was probation, so she supposed suffering was what she deserved. Traffic, of all things. It wasn't fair, shouldn't a police officer be allowed to break the law once in a while? Everyone else got to do it, and she was late to work. But no, and she had to be pulled over by that jerk Darien. He loved getting it on her. Anyone else would have just given her a ticket and kept it quiet, but no, he made a big deal of bringing her in and announcing to her superiors that she had been speeding. So here she was. It was ironic, traffic, but what was worse is it was traffic in a residential area with a stop sign at every block. She wasn't going to bust someone for running one stop sign. She sighed and leaned on her bike, peeking out through the bushes that partially concealed her vantage point. Here comes a car, nice one, blood red, fast. Whoop, missed that stop sign, and the next, and the next. Yes! Haruka peeled out of her spot and flipped her siren on. All systems go. Yes! The car wasn't pulling over. A chase! There was no way she was calling for backup on this. That red car was hers and hers alone. Haruka dodged past cars that didn't get to the side fast enough. She was going seventy, eighty, ninety. The red car sped up. She had to keep on going straight. There was no way a car could handle a turn going that fast: One hundred, one ten.

The car whirled on a wide corner, its left wheels gripping only air for seconds. Haruka stared, and only remembered to turn at the last possible instant. She sped after the amazing driver; she was abreast. There was a circle. This was her chance; she put on an extra burst of speed and drove the car towards the curb. The driver slowed. Haruka turned in farther. The car stopped. Haruka sighed, and the car sped backwards around the circle in reverse. No one did this. This was insane! Haruka hit the accelerator in glee as the car did a one eighty and sped off down the road.

Highway! This was it. There was traffic ahead. The car sped into the shoulder, spurting up gravel behind its wheels. Haruka stayed in the road, dodging between cars and trucks, keeping up with the red car. Then the light, Haruka and the red car sped through it at the same moment. An overpass was coming up ahead. Haruka started pushing to the side. The car broke forward. Haruka slammed the gas and cut sharper, putting her body in the way of the car. The car wheeled off the road and stopped. Haruka stopped in front of it and dismounted her bike. She sauntered in proper policeman form to the window. The tinted glass was rolled down. The driver brushed her aquamarine colored hair off her shoulder and gave Haruka a glance, then she gave her a second glance and smiled.

"Ever think about racing those things professionally?"

"I did cars on the junior circuit when I was younger, but I had to get a real job."

"You should try Motocross; bet they're looking for talent like you."

"What about you, ever raced?"

"I never did a circuit, but you could say it's an important skill in my profession."

"And does this profession give you an excuse for breaking every traffic ordinance in the book. Mine doesn't even do that."

"If I was on a diplomatic mission?" Michiru suggested.

"Where are your plates?"

"Secret service?"

"Badge."

Michiru sighed. "Then take me in. I'm running on empty anyways." She held out her hands.

"I'm on a motorcycle."

"I'll hold on really tight. Go fast please."

"You were going as fast as me, in that amazing car."

"That car, no, if I throw it into reverse when I'm going thirty it'll grind and stop. My car now, that's an awesome car."

"This isn't yours?"

"Nope, it's stolen."

"Stolen?"

Michiru pulled the cuffs out of Haruka's pocket and snapped one end on her right wrist. Then she wrapped her arms around Haruka's waist and snapped the other one on.

"Yeah," She pressed up against Haruka's back, "what do you think my profession is anyways?"

Where am I… Michiru blinked a few times and tried to rub her eyes. This however was thwarted by her inability to move her hands, due to the fact they were still chained together around the body of a motorcycle cop. The memories surfaced slowly, but when they bubbled to the surface she let out a small groan. Why? Why was her failing fast cars and cute girls? And how embarrassing is it to look back on one's vaguely inane attempts (successful though) at seduction. However, she wasn't going to be taken in. There was a point to all of this, even if she was still attached to the cop… physically, nothing else!

The handcuffs being somewhat in the way, the undressing had been haphazard and incomplete. If she could just squirm a little more underneath, she could reach a little farther, and… there! The keys were off the belt. She unlocked the handcuffs. Now all she had to do was remove her arm from underneath… there, she was out. Michiru sat up and reorganized her clothes.

She spotted Haruka's jacket on the floor, leaned over, picked it up and put it on. She dropped the keys in her pocket. There was something already in there. She pulled out a wallet. She slid it back in. Then she carefully removed Haruka's belt and gun. She picked up the motorcycle helmet and started for the door. At the door she paused and glanced back at the sleeping girl. She gritted her teeth, but finally gave in. She went over to the bed and cuffed Haruka's ankles together. Then, fully satisfied, she left the hotel.

Approximately an hour later a crash was heard from the room. Haruka pulled herself into a sitting position on the floor and rested her head in her hand. Though she knew her situation was not a good one and would require many embarrassing explanations, not to mention possibly the hunt for a new job, she couldn't help but want to laugh. Someone who does the equivalent of tying your shoelaces together can't have been too much of a mistake.

So, Haruka took stock of her situation, She took your keys, she took your bike, she took your wallet, and she took most of your dignity, what are you going to do now?… oh bugger, she took your gun too, you're not going to survive this one. Just imagine informing your superiors of this one. "Well, you could say I was mugged, sort of, by a really cute car thief." "How did this occur exactly?" "Um… it's really embarrassing." 

Haruka groaned and carefully shuffled towards the door. How was she even going to get there? It was six miles.

Haruka called her mom collect from the lobby of the hotel.

"Where have you been!"

"Um…"

"When you didn't come home last night we were worried sick, we thought you were dead. Your boss called this morning saying that you didn't report for duty, where are you?"

"Um, mom, can I have a ride?"

"Where's your bike?"

"That's an interesting story, mom, I really need a ride, I mean _really_."

"What do you mean?"

"Mom! Please! I don't have my bike, I don't have any money, and my ankles are handcuffed together!"

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

"Have you been drinking?"

"No, mother."

"Then tell me where you are. I want the whole story."

Haruka eventually managed to get in the car. This required sitting down and then lifting her legs while pivoting in the seat. Her mother watched this maneuver very carefully.

"Now," her mother said, as she pulled onto the highway. "Tell me everything."

Haruka slumped in her seat, "well, it all started with this red car."

Rei hit the talk button on her radio, "Captain, there's a car speeding through here at at least sixty, they haven't stopped for one stop sign yet. What do I do?"

"Go after them! I'll send back up."

The back up was unneeded. The car pulled over. "Hi."

Rei froze. The aqua haired girl smiled guiltily, "I was looking for Haruka."

"You, you're that girl?"

Michiru laughed, "What are they saying about me?"

"Well, you got Haruka fired."

"I thought that might have happened."

"Everything! You took everything, bike, gun, badge…"

"What about the handcuffs? Did they mention the handcuffs?"

Rei furrowed her eyebrows, "no, there was nothing about handcuffs."

Michiru laughed again, "She got out of that one then. Anyways, officer, do you know where I could find her?"

"You want me to give you directions?" Rei gasped, "I'm taking you in. You are under arrest for… a lot of things."

"Sorry, can't stay."

Michiru accelerated out, skimming through the just big enough space between the back of Rei's patrol car and her own front headlight.

Rei stared in shock. Then she looked down and muttered to herself. "Well, I understand why Haruka fell, she's always been a sucker for a fast car."

Haruka had found a new job. Unfortunately this one had a lot of loud noises when she was trying to sleep. "Come on Newbie, there's a fire!"

Yes, Haruka was now a fireman, she was slowly working her way through government jobs with male suffixes.

The house was burning merrily. The mother and four-year-old daughter were outside. "The alarm didn't go off. He stayed in bed. Please, can't someone go in after them."

"Kitty!" the child wailed.

The chief turned to Haruka "Get in there!"

This was very much against her self-preservation instinct, but this was her job. She charged in and found her way into the kitchen, looking for stairs. Then a spectre appeared from her past.

Michiru had a cat in her arms, "I've got the cat, let's go."

"But what about the father?"

"Can't you hear it, the floor is about to go!" She grabbed her arm and dragged her out. The floor crashed down behind them. Michiru gave the cat to the child. The mother had fainted into the fire chief's arms. Haruka pulled off her helmet, "What are you doing here?"

Michiru glanced over her shoulder at the new fireman, "rescuing a cat."

Then she started walking away. Haruka chased after her.

"I want more information."

"Sorry."

"You had time to rescue the cat, what about the guy, he's dead."

"Yes." She walked faster. "That was the point."

"What?" Haruka froze, then recovered herself and sprinted to catch up. "What do you mean?"

"It was arson, and I set it." Haruka grabbed her arm. Michiru spun, throwing the hand off, "why do I always confess myself to you? You don't need to know any of this. You don't need to know who I work for or why that man had to die and I locked the door. I heard him banging, yelling, finally screaming, and I left him there. I had to go back for the cat, but I was the one who killed the man."

Her back was shaking, Haruka, seeing this, had stopped listening to what the words said, only how they felt. She reached out, and Michiru fell into her arms. She leaned close to her ear and whispered soothing nothings. Her hand slipped into Michiru's coat pocket and liberated the keys.

"Let me drive you home."

"You think I'm going to let a civil servant know where I live?"

"Come on." Haruka ran her fingers up under Michiru's shirt. "If you were really worried about my civil servant status you wouldn't confess yourself to me." She tightened her arms around Michiru. "They're the only ones stupid enough to give me a job."

"What if I just don't want you to know where I live?"

"Then take me to a hotel and cuff my ankles together. I really don't care. I just have to make sure that you're okay."

"And the action of sexual congress with you is an indication that my mental health is adequate? I would assume the opposite."

"I just want to drive you somewhere, where you will sleep out the night. Wait until you fall asleep, and then stand guard against nightmares for as long as you need me."

"I don't get nightmares, and I don't do firemen."

Then they were kissing. Neither of them could decide whose fault it was.

Haruka stared, her arms going limp. Michiru gritted her teeth, then snatched the keys out of Haruka's hand and ran for it. Haruka went back to the truck. She didn't lose the job, but she was yelled at a bit.

But the kiss had been a bit much for them both. Haruka lay awake in her fireman's bunk all night. And Michiru stared distractedly at the horizon as she sped along the highway on Haruka's police motorcycle.

Haruka went home after her shift and was greeted by her mom who had recently risen from a good night's sleep unlike Haruka who staggered into the house wanting nothing more than to fall back into bed. But her mother was bright and cheery and had made breakfast, so instead she fell into a chair and stared vaguely in the direction of the bacon.

"Haruka honey-." Haruka noticed that her mother was speaking and turned her vague gaze in that direction at least attempting to look like she was paying attention, hey, it had gotten her through high school.

"I was thinking that these civil servant jobs, though they do have quite good benefits, are a little low paying for one of your intellectual caliber."

Haruka closed her eyes, somehow it was not worth it to still be living in her parent's basement, but that was the result of having no ideas about what she wanted to do with her life.

"And I got you an interview!"

"What!"

"Haruka, I got you an interview to be a security guard at the Frist Building in the city. They like retired policemen."

"I'm not retired. I was fired, if you recall."

Haruka's mother slammed her hand on the table and looked her only daughter in the eye.

"And how I am supposed to forget your idiotic decision to forget your job and take your prisoner to a hotel for completely irresponsible sex!"

"Mom, I know it was really stupid-" Haruka said quietly.

"You never listen to a thing I say. I go and do these great things for you and you don't even appreciate them."

"I'm sorry mom, I'll go to the interview."

"Great! It's at one o'clock." Haruka looked at the clock on the wall and winced as the minute hand knocked into eleven o'one.

"I'm going to take a nap. Wake me at noon." Haruka ran up the stairs and collapsed into bed.

Haruka had made it on time, but had been sent to a waiting room and had been waiting for twenty minutes already. She groaned, leaned back in the chair and gazed through the window that lead out into the hall, wishing that this stupid interview hadn't interrupted her nap. Then her eye caught a flash of aquamarine hair and she sat up.

"Michiru?" she said, before she could stop herself. The girl turned, stared, pulled off her sunglasses and did a double-take.

"What are _you_ doing here?"

"Job interview."

Michiru stormed into the waiting room, grabbed Haruka's arm and dragged her out the door.

"Hurry up! We have to get out of here!"

"Um-"

Michiru dragged her into the stairwell and down a few floors before she paused on a landing. The sound of an explosion came from above, it echoed down the stairwell. Michiru grasped Haruka's hand and sped down the rest of the stairs to the exit. They rushed out, holding tightly in the crush of people fleeing the building. They headed through a small alley and stopped in front of the police bike.

"You blew up the building? You set a bomb in the building?"

Michiru was laughing. Haruka stared at her.

"You're a terrorist!"

"I prefer urban guerrilla. I'm not trying to inspire fear, just to take out specific targets. Boy, that was a rush. I haven't felt a rush like that in a long time."

"Michiru!-" but suddenly Michiru was on her, arms around her neck, knees gripping her hips, and kissing her. She couldn't help but kiss back.

Michiru dropped to the ground, panting a little, her cheeks hot. She grinned up at Haruka and pulled the keys out of her pocket.

"Where do you want me to drop you?"

Haruka gave her a look. "That's my bike."

"Oh no, that _was_ your bike. Now it is my bike."

"Fine. Take me home?"

Luckily Haruka's mother was out because Michiru followed her in.

"Um, do you want a drink or something?"

Michiru arched an eyebrow. "Like you don't know what I want. You're lucky I didn't crash with the way you were feeling me up all the way back."

"Er, I'm sorry, I'm not used to being a passenger…"

"You dork." Michiru caught her by the necktie and pulled her down the stairs to the basement.

Michiru woke up at five and yelled silently a herself for falling asleep at all. Then she groaned because she was as trapped in Haruka's arms as she had been when she was handcuffed there. She carefully managed to wriggle out and find most of her clothes. She folded up the trenchcoat and left it on Haruka's dresser, then picked up her white dress shirt and slipped it on over her own aqua tank top. She was ready to go and looked back at the sleeping girl. She did sleep like a rock. She weighed the options in her head and sighed. Then she carefully removed a shoelace form one of Haruka's sneaker and tied her ankle to the bedpost. Haruka gave a little murmur and Michiru stretched out on the bed for a moment and kissed her. Then sauntered up the stairs, past Haruka's mother who was making dinner and paused to stare, past Haruka's father who was walking in the door and out to her police motorcycle.

Haruka's father shrugged and turned on the television. Haruka's mother threw down her spoon and was ready to storm down the stairs when a bulletin on the television made her pause.

"The Frist Building in the financial district of New York City was bombed today at 1:27pm. The blast was centered in the hallway next to the main meeting room while a meeting was in progress. Six casualties were reported and twelve injuries. This action is suspected to be the work of the Communist Guerrilla group MOCK. MOCK member Michiru Kaioh was spotted leaving the scene of the attack. If anyone has any information on her whereabouts please call this toll free number…"

Haruka's father glanced over to Haruka's mother. "Does she look familiar to you?"

"Oh my baby…" Haruka's mother sank to her knees.

Haruka awoke refreshed and moved to climb out of bed and crashed onto the floor. She glared up at her ankle which had remained higher than the rest of her as it was attatched to the bedpost. She awkwardly sat up and managed to untie the bonds. Then she lay on the floor and laughed for a moment until she remembered Michiru laughing earlier that afternoon. Then she lay silently, thinking. She got up swiftly and dressed. She sat down at her computer and opened her web browser.


End file.
